Compound coke oven battery with controlled two stage heating and air admission



March 4, 1969 E. F. SCHGN Filed June 9, 1966 HEATING AND AIR ADMISSION BY NM 4.4,.

ERICH STAGE Sheet L of 5 lNVElqTOR SCHON rfiix.

TTORNEYS.

March 4, 1969 E. F. SCHCN 3,431,178

COMPOUND COKE OVEN BATTERY WITH CONTROLLED TWO STAGE HEATING AND AIR ADMISSION Filed June 9, 1966 Sheet Z of 5 FIG. 3.

INVENTOR ERICH F. SCHO ATTORNEYS.

E. F. SCHCN BAT March 4, 1969 3,431,178 COMPOUND COKE OVEN Y WITH CONTROLLED TWO STAGE TER HEATING AND AIR ADMISSION Filed June 9, 1966 INVENTOR ERICH F. SCHON HM 4%.,

TTORNEYS.

\NV M Y.

United States Patent 17 Claims This invention relates to horizontal coke ovens with vertical heating flues and particularly to improvements in controlling the heating of horizontal coke ovens with vertical heating flues which are adapted to be heated alternatively by rich and lean gas.

The standard horizontal coke oven battery comprises a plurality of elongated ovens which are spaced apart by coke oven heating walls. Each coke oven heating wall includes two spaced liners with vertical flues extending therebetween. The flues may be interconnected in a number of diflerent fashions such as by connecting one flue only with the adjacent flue to thereby form what is commonly known as a hairpin flue oven or the flues may be so connected that all of the flues distributed along one end of the oven are up flues whereas all the flues on the other end are down flues to thereby form a two divided oven. There are also what is known as four divided ovens and cross-over ovens, in the latter of which the flues in one heating wall serve as up flues and the flues in the heating wall on the other side of the coke oven chamber serve as down flues.

Regardless of which type of flue arrangement is employed all of the conventional types of coke ovens utilize a principle of introduction of air and gas into the bottoms of a plurality of up flow flues wherein the gas and air combine and burn to thereby yield heat, which heat is transmitted through the heating Wall liners and into the coke oven chamber wherein the coal charge is heated and converted to coke. It is always desirable in coking a charge of coal that the charge be coked at a substantially constant rate at all levels of the charge whereby when any portion of the charge is fully coked the remainder thereof is also fully coked to thereby make the entire charge ready to be pushed from the coke oven chamber and thereby render the coke oven chamber ready for subsequent recharging. Regenerator chambers communicating with the flues, which regenerator chambers are below the coking chambers and heating walls and extend transversely of the battery, serve to supply pre-heated air to the up flues and to remove combustion products and waste gas from the down flues.

There are two types of gas which are normally employed in coke ovens for providing the fuel therefor. There is a rich coke oven gas which has a heating value of approximately 500 to 1000 B.t.u.s per cubic foot and a lean coke oven gas which has a heating value of approximately 80 to 150 B.t.u.s per cubic foot. Due to their low heat content lean gases tend to burn comparatively slow and hence to yield a very long flame, substantially co-equal with the full length of the heating flue. To insure full combustion of lean gas, intimate mixture of the gas with combustion air is preferably effected and the path of travel through the up flue must be substantially long to insure complete combustion before the gas changes direction and starts moving either sideways or downward depending on the type of flue construction. Due to the slow burning characteristics of lean gas, there tends to be higher temperatures at the upper end of the line than at the lower end.

However, when rich gas is employed the gas tends to burn very rapidly and hence yield a short and concen- 3,431,178 Patented Mar. 4, 1969 trated flame. This short flame usually results in a very high temperature adjacent the bottom of the flue which is the normal point of introduction of the air and gas into the flue with a sharply reduced temperature adjacent the top of the flue.

There have been a number of attempts to compensate for the bad temperature distribution in rich gas ovens and particularly in gun flue ovens. The most common expedient for overcoming this difliculty has been to step the thickness of the heating wall liners (stepped wall liners) making the bottom of the liners substantially thicker than the top thereof to thereby retard heat transfer at the bottom as compared with the top to render the temperature in the coke oven chamber substantially constant from bottom to top. While this expedient does work, it will be obvious that what is being done is to reduce the temperature at the bottom of the coke oven chamber so that it will equal the lower temperature at the top of the coke oven chamber. This, however, is not wholly desirable since the coking rate is dependent upon the temperature. Accordingly, by using this expedient the coking rate may well be lower than can be economically achieved at higher temperatures which are not possible when using the stepped Wall liner expedient. Furthermore, the cost of thickening the bottoms/ of the heading wall liners adds to the total cost of the coke oven and, in addition, subjects the bottom of the heating wall liner t very high temperatures which hastens the deterioration of the fire bricks.

Still another means of achieving uniform heating in rich gas ovens has been the use of the Still or Christmas tree oven, as exemplified by U.S. Patent No. 1,901,770, granted to Herman 'Petsch on Mar. 14, 1933. In these ovens rich gas is introduced at the bottom of the oven and air is introduced at various levels into the heating flue by means of a branched inclined passage through the binder wall. Thus a portion of the gas will combine with the air at different levels and distribute the combustion along the length of the vertical heating flue and thereby tend to eliminate the hot bottom spots prevalent in conventional rich gas ovens. However, the Still oven has never been adopted in America due to the fact that the air must be passed up to the various levels in the flue by means of a passage in the heating wall binders which passage tends to Weaken the binder and hence the entire coke oven wall structure. Moreover, there is no opportunity for regulating the amount of air introduced at various levels which thereby renders the oven a fairly inflexible device which cannot be adapted to different types of rich gas.

In underjet horizontal coke ovens wherein the gas is introduced at the bottom of the oven through steel pipes, the problem of eliminating the hot spot at the bottom of the oven has been reduced by introducing the gas at two levels, that is by providing high and low burners. By utilizing high and low burners the variation in temperature over the height or length of the flue is reduced as there are two vertically spaced heat sources. However, there still remains substantial variation in temperature of the order of about half that encountered when just a low burner is employed. Moreover, the expedient of high and low burners has never been successful in gun flue ovens due to the fact that the rich gas passing to the upper oven is cracked due to the high temperatures at the bottom of the oven to thereby yield carbonization and the depositing of gums and resins at the high burner which clog the burner and reduce the heating value of the gas.

An excellent discussion of these problems is presented in an article entitled Wilputte Issues a White Paper, by Louis Wilputte, May 1939 issue of Blast Furnace and Steel Plant magazine.

In US. Patent No. 3,211,632 granted to Carl Otto on Oct. 12, 1965, there is described an important improvement in coke oven construction for achieving uniform heating in rich gas ovens. In US. Patent 3,087,868 granted to Carl Otto on Apr. 30, 1963 a modification in this coke oven construction is described for achieving uniform heating in compound coke ovens both during rich gas and lean gas operation. The improved coke oven construction described in U.S. Patent 3,087,868 comprises a coke oven battery having a plurality of coke oven chambers spaced apart by heating walls wherein each heating wall is made of two liners of substantially uniform thickness throughout the vertical length thereof with a plurality of flues disposed between the heating wall liners. In each flue there are provided a rich gas entrance at the bottom for introduction of rich gas in substantially a wholly vertical direction and means remote from the zone of introduction of the rich gas for introducing combustion air in an upward path parallel to the path of the gas at two levels. The higher level of air introduction is the top of a chimney disposed in the flue. Accordingly, during rich gas operation a stream of air of insuflicient amount for oxidizing all of the rich gas is introduced at the same level as the rich gas and slowly admixes with the gas to thereby retard total combustion of the gas as it passes up the flue and another stream of air is introduced at a higher level through the chimney. That portion of the rich gas which has not been oxidized by the air by the time it passes the upper level of air introduction will slowly admix with the air introduced in said upper level to continue burning as the gas moves up the flue. Thus combustion will take place along substantially the entire length of the flue and at a relatively uniform rate to thereby render a substantially uniform temperature throughout the length of the heating flue. 35

When lean gas is employed the rich gas introducing means is rendered inoperative and the lean gas is mixed with the combustion air just prior to their introduction at the bottom of the flue to thereby insure combustion of the introduced lean gas and combustion air. Additional lean gas and combustion air are permitted to flow into the chimney and to mix and burn therein and a substantially uniform temperature is achieved throughout the height of the flue.

To obtain eflicient and flexible operation of such coke oven construction and to obtain maximum benefit therefrom, it is necessary to regulate the amounts of mixed lean gas and combustion air introduced at the bottom of the flue and into the chimney during lean gas operation and the amounts of combustion air introduced during rich gas operation. In the construction of US. Patent 3,087,868 such regulation is achieved by means of sliding bricks slidably disposed at the openings in the bottom of the flue and at the top of the chimney. In order to adjust the desired flow rates it is necessary to manipulate the sliding bricks by means of long rods extending downwardly from an opening in the top of each flue. Such adjustment has proved cumbersome and ditficult, in part due to the considerable height of the flue and in part because each brick has to be individually manipulated, making uniformity of adjustment along a row of flues difficult to achieve.

In my US. application Ser. No. 556,397 filed by me concurrently herewith, I disclose a novel means for obviating the use of sliding bricks and achieving more effective and convenient regulation of the air flow in rich gas ovens. This regulation is achieved by supplying air to the openings at the bottoms of the flues from separate banks of regenerators from those supplying air to the chimneys. The regulation can then be readily and precisely achieved by means remote from the flues which regulate the air supply to the regenerators. In the embodiment illustrated therein, separate sole channels service each bank of regenerators. t

While my novel construction for regulating the air sup- 75 ply to the flues of rich gas ovens is excellently adapted for the purposes described, it is not feasible to apply the same expedient to compound ovens without modifications because separate banks of generators are required for supplying lean gas and air to the flues during lean gas operation, and space requirements militate against using separate banks of regenerators for independently supplying air and lean gas to the openings at the bottoms of the flues and to the chimneys. The present invention is directed to a coke oven construction which will operate when burning rich gas in the manner described in connection with my aforementioned copending application and which will permit equivalent regulation of the air and lean gas supply during lean gas operation without using different banks of regenerators for supplying air to the opening at the bottoms of the flues from those supplying air to the chimneys and separate banks of regenerators for supplying lean gas to the opening at the bottom of the flues from those supplying lean gas to the chimneys.

The main object of the present invention is the provision of a new and improved compound horizontal coke oven which will provide substantially uniform heating along the vertical length of the heating walls and will include means remote from the heating flues for eflectively and conveniently regulating both the flow of air to the heating flues during rich gas operation and the flow of air and lean gas thereto during lean gas operation.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of a new and improved compound horizontal coke oven having means remote from the heating flues for eifectively and conveniently regulating both the flow of air to the heating flues during rich gas operation of the oven and the flow of air and lean gas to the heating flues during lean gas operation.

Yet another object of the present invention is the provision of a new and improved compound horizontal coke oven having air and gas introduction means in the heating flues arranged to render combustion substantially uniform throughout the length of the flues and improved means for regulating the flow of air and gas to the air and gas introduction means, respectively, more eifectively, conveniently and accurately than was heretofore possible regardless of whether rich gas or lean gas is being burned.

The above and other objects, characteristics and features of the present invention will be more fully understood from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying illustrative drawings.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a transverse sectional view of a coke oven battery embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 22 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing four connection plates containing diiterently dimensioned apertures therein; and

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view of a coke oven illustrating one arrangement for supplying air and gas to the flues in accordance with the present invention.

Referring to the drawings in detail, FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate generally a horizontal coke oven battery 10 of well known general construction. The illustrated coke oven battery 10 is of the compound hairpin type using the underjet principle on rich gas operation, although the invention is not necessarily limited to this type of battery and is also applicable to gun flue ovens as well as to twodivided, four-divided, and crossover batteries, etc. The battery 10 comprises a masonry layer 12 which is preferably made of concrete and may or may not form the roof of a conventional basement space 14. L yer 12 provides a support for the coke oven brickwork which forms an upper section 16 and a lower section 18 which are divided by an intermediate horizontal refractory deck 20. The upper section 16 comprises horizontally elongated coking chambers 22 alternating with heating walls 24. In the illustrated hairpin flue type of oven each heating wall 24 is divided into a plurality of noncommunicating pairs of vertical flues 26 and 28, the two flues of each pair being connected at the upper ends by a passage 30.

Lower section 18 is divided into a plurality of regenerator chambers 32, 34, 36 and 38 by vertical pillar walls 40. The regenerator chambers underlie the heating walls 24 and the coking chambers 22. A row of regenerator chambers extends from one side of the battery to the other.

Each heating wall 24 is made up of two spaced vertical brickwork liners 42 and 44 between which extend the hairpin flues 26 and 28 and the connecting passages 30. To define the flues 26 and 28 and the passages 30 vertically extending binder walls 46 and 48 extend between the brickwork liners 42 and 44 'at spaced intervals to divide the space between the liners 42 and 44 into the flues 26 and 28. As seen in FIG. 1 the walls 46 do not extend to the tops of the flues but are spaced apart therefrom to provide for the passages 30 and the walls 48 extend to the top of the flues to separate one pair of hairpin flues 26-28 from the adjacent pairs thereof. Each of the brickwork liners 42 and 44 is preferably of substantially uniform thickness throughout save for the bottommost courses of bricks not exceeding about three of standard dimensions in number, which bottommost courses are thickened to provide for erosion resistance to the action of the pusher. As has been pointed out hereinbefore, the use of the uniformly thick liners 42 and 44 can only be effectuated provided the burning or heating in the flues 26 and 28 is substantially uniform throughout the height thereof.

When the battery is operated on rich gas, the rich gas is supplied to the bottom of each flue 26 and 28 by means of a main 50. Branching off from main 50 are pairs of conduits 52 and 54, each pair of conduits extending beneath a heating wall 24. A distribution riser 56 extends vertically from conduit 52 to the bottom of each flue 26 and a distribution riser 58 similarly extends vertically from conduit 54 to the bottom of each flue 28. Rich gas flow to conduits 52 and 54 is controlled by reversing valves 60 and 61, respectively. It will be understood that rich gas is alternatively fed to the conduits 52 and 54 depending upon the flow of heating products through the flues 26 and 28. In the event that air and rich gas are moving upwardly through the flues 26 and combustion products are moving downwardly through the flues 28 then reversing valve 60 is opened and reversing valve 61 closed so that rich gas is fed to the bottoms of flues 26 through the conduits 52 and the risers 56 and at that time no gas is flowing through the conduits 54 and the risers 58. When the flow is reversed, the valve 60 is opened and gas ceases to flow through conduits 52 and risers 56 but rich gas is instead supplied to the bottoms of flues 28 through conduits 54 and risers 58. Naturally, during lean gas operation both valves 60 and 61 will be closed and no rich gas will be supplied to the conduits 52 and 54 or to the flues 26 and 28. Although this underjet construction is presently preferred, as already noted, the present invention can also be practiced with other constructions such as gun flue ovens.

As shown herein, each flue 26 has an air inlet 62 and an air or lean gas inlet 63 located at the bottom thereof at substantially the same level as the opening of rich gas riser '56 therein and a bifurcated chimney 64 the lower end of which is anchored to the refractory deck at the bottom of flue '26. The chimney 64, which has a vertically extending air passage 66 and a vertically extending air or lean gas passage 67 parallel to passage 66 therethrough extends upwardly a substantial distance above the refractory deck 20. For instance, in a modern coke oven construction wherein the vertically extending flue 26 is approximately fourteen feet in height, the top of the chimney may be approximately three feet above the refractory deck 20. Each flue 28 is similarly provided with a lower air inlet 68 and a lower air or lean gas inlet 69' and a chimney 70 having vertically extending therethrough in an air passage 72 and an air or lean gas passage 73.

As is generally known by those skilled in the art, in a compound oven the passages through the deck 20 from the regenerators to the heating flues are so arranged that when the flues 26 in one heating wall are serving as up flues the flues 26 in the next adjacent heating wall serve as down flues. Moreover, in rich gas operation the rows of regenerators operate in tandem to supply combustion air to the flues. That is, during one-half of the cycle of operation air is introduced upwardly through the regenerators 32 and 34 and the waste gas is removed from the down flues through the regenerators 36 and 38. Hence, in rich gas operation, during the half of the cycle when the risers 56 supply rich gas to the up flues 26, combustion air will be introduced through the regenerators 32 .and 34 to the up flues 26 and the waste products will pass out of the down flues 28 through the regenerator chambers 36 and 38. The rich gas is introduced at the bottoms of the flues in a substantially solely vertical direction. The combustion air will be introduced at two levels. One of the levels is at the bottom of the up flues 26 through inlets 62 and 63 and the second level is at the top of the chimneys 64 through passages 66 and 67. The combustion air is introduced at both levels in substantially solely vertically directed streams and the streams are preferably non-turbulent whereby to yield a laminar flow. By virtue of the laminar flow, the gas and air will slowly admix to thereby retard combustion. Further, insuflicient air is introduced at the bottoms of the flues to fully oxidize the righ gas, which further serves to lengthen the flame. When the gas and air introduced at the bottom of the flue, and the reaction products therefrom, pass the tops of the chimneys, the second stream of combustion air will commence moving upwardly through the up flues in a non-turbulent laminar fashion and will slowly admix with the unreacted and partially reacted rich gas to continue the burning thereof. By proper proportioning of the volume of air introduced at the bottoms of the flues and through the tops of the chimneys, the rich gas can be burned throughout substantially the full length of the flues in a uniform fashion to thereby render uniform heating throughout the entire vertical length of the flue.

Naturally, at the end of one half of the cycle of operation, the flow of air and gas is reversed so that the up flues during the first half of the cycle become down flues. Reversal is effected by introducing air through regenerators 36 and 38, regenerators 32 and 34 now serving for withdrawal of the waste products from the down flues. Rich gas is supplied to the up flues 28 through the risers 58.

As those skilled in the art understand, during lean gas operation lean gas is introduced into a compound oven through the regenerator chambers themselves. What is commonly done is that combustion air is introduced through, for instance, the regenerator chambers 32 and the lean gas is introduced through the regenerator chambers 34, with the waste products being removed through regenerator chambers 36 and 38. During reverse operation combustion air is introduced through the regenerator chambers 36, lean gas is introduced through the regenerator chambers '38, and the waste products are removed through regenerator chambers 32 and 34. The length of the flame is regulated to render uniform heating throughout the length of the flue by proper proportioning of the volume of air and of lean gas introduced at the bottoms of the flues and through the tops of the chimneys. The introduction of a portion of the air and lean gas through the tops of the chimneys serves to extend the height of the flame, such extension being desirable even in lean gas operation in order to achieve uniform heating throughout the height of the flues because of the increased height of heating flues in modern coke ovens.

As stated hereinbefore, one of the objects of the present invention is to provide means remote from the flues for conveniently and accurately regulating the total amount of combustion air introduced into each flue during rich gas operation and for regulating the relative proportions of said combustion air introduced into the bottoms of the flues and at the tops of the chimneys as well as for separately regulating the amounts and proportions of com bustion air and lean gas during lean gas operation. The means for achieving these desirable ends are illustrated in detail in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4. Referring now to these figures, each of the regenerator chambers 32, 34, '36 and 38 extending from one side of the battery to the other is divided by walls 74 into alternating adjacent end to end sections A and B.

Referring particularly to FIG. 2, each section A of regenerator 32 is connected to an inlet 62 in the bottom of a flue 26 by means of an inclined channel 76, and adjacent section B of regenerator 32 is connected to a passage 66 in a chimney 64 of the same flue 26 by an inclined channel 78, or to a passage 66 in a flue 26 in an adjacent heating wall. Similarly, each regenerator section 34A is connected to an inlet 63 in the bottom of a flue 26 by means of an inclined channel 80 and each section 34B is connected to a passage 67 in a chimney 64 of a flue 26 by means of an inclined channel 82. Likewise, with regard to flues 28, each section 36A is connected to an inlet 69 in the bottom of a flue 28 by means of an inclined channel 84, each section 36B is connected to a passage 72 in a chimney 70 by means of an inclined channel 86, each section 38A is connected to an inlet 69 by means of an inclined channel 88 and each section 38B is connected to a passage 73 in a chimney 70 by means of an inclined channel 90.

As illustrated and as presently preferred the regenerator sections A and B of a regenerator 32 are all supplied with combustion air or lean gas by the same sole channel 92, the regenerator sections A and B of regenerator 34 are all supplied with combustion air or lean gas from the same sole channel 94, the regenerator sections A and B of each regenerator 36 are all supplied with combustion air or lean gas by the same sole channel 96 and the regenerator sections A and B of each regenerator 38 are all supplied with combustion air or lean gas by the same sole channel 98. While this arrangement provides a convenient means for controlling the supply of combustion air and lean gas to each regenerator, which means, as already described, may be exterior of the brickwork of the battery such as through valve means 106 and 110 to be described hereinafter, it is desirable to provide means for proportioning the flow of combustion air or lean gas from a common sole channel to the various regenerator sections in the regenerator supplied thereby. That is to say, in addition to means for proportioning the supply of combustion air or lean gas to the respective sole channels, means are preferably included for proportioning the supply of combustion air or lean gas from a given sole channel to the regenerator sections A and B supplied therefrom. Such proportioning can be effected by proportioning the openings between the sole channel and the various regenerator sections supplied by that sole channel. However, if the proportioning is done by sizing the passages in the brickwork defining the division between the sole channel and its respective regenerator, the structure is set and inflexible, which may give rise to serious distribution problems during the operation of the coke oven battery.

Accordingly, in the present invention, it is preferred that the proportioning of supply of combustion air and lean gas from a given sole channel to the regenerator sections of a regenerator supplied therefrom be effected by an apertured plate 111 which is preferably removable to enable the resizing of the apertures therein. Such a plate is described in detail in US. patent application, S.N. 215,587 filed by Walter Grumm on Aug. 8, 1962 and now US. Patent No. 3,252,872. In accordance with the teaching of said US. patent application and in accordance with the preferred structure for the present invention, the plate 111 is made of a plurality of plate sections which are detachably connected to one another as by nuts and bolts or the like. The plate 111 lies on a brickwork shoulder 112 near the tops of the sole channels and is slidable relative to said shoulder. As the plate 111 is made of a multiplicity of sections, the plate can be readily removed by reaching through a port 126 in the intake box at either end of the sole channel and sliding the plate out through said port section by section. This permits the ready resizing of the apertures in the plate 111 by replacing a particular section with a substitute section and the connection of said substitute section in the plate by means of nuts and bolts or the like.

As presently preferred, each section of the plate 111 underlies a regenerator section A or regenerator section B although, of course, a plate section could serve either a fraction of a regenerator section or a multiple thereof. The structure of an apertured plate 111 is best seen in FIG. 3 wherein four plate sections 114, 116, 118 and 120 are shown interconnected by means of nut and bolt connections 124. Each of the plate sections is provided with a plurality of apertures 122. By proportioning the total aperture area in each of the plate sections 114, 116, 118 and 120 the flow of combustion air or lean gas from a sole channel to the regenerator sections supplied therefrom can be proportioned.

As previously mentioned, the supply of lean gas or combustion air to the sole channels is readily controllable from outside the battery by means of valves 106 and 110. Specifically, lean gas is furnished to the battery through lean gas mains 107. Rising from the mains 107 are risers 108 which extend into the intake boxes 100 associated with their respective sole channels. Interposed in the risers 108 are control valves 110 which by proper operation of one relative to the others can effect the control of proportioning gas supply to the various sole channels. Combustion air is supplied to the intake boxes associated with the sole channels through valves 106 which are also exterior to the battery srtucture and hence conveniently controllable. By manipulating the valves 106 a proportioning of the combustion air supply to the various sole channels can be effected. As is commonly known in the art when a sole channel is connected to down flues, then the waste combustion gases pass out from the sole channels through the intake box to a conduit 102 and thence to a chimney flue 104.

On rich gas operation when the heating flues 26 serve as up flues and the heating flues 28 serve as down flues, the valves 60 controlling the flow of rich gas from the rich gas main 50 to the distribution conduits '52 serving flues 26 are open and the valves 61 controlling the flow of rich gas to the distribution conduits 54 serving the flues 28 are closed. Thus, rich gas is supplied through the rich gas riser 56 opening in each flue 26. Combustion air is supplied to each flue 26 at all four points or inlets 62, 63, 66 and 67 by supplying combustion air through the valves 106 to the sole channels 92 and 94 which in turn supply regenerators 32 and 34. Thus, preheated combustion air will flow from regenerator sections 32A and 34A through channels 76 and 80 to the openings 62 and 63 in the bottoms of the flues 26 where such combustion air will be introduced in substantially a vertical direction to slowly admix with the rich gas flowing into said flue at the bot om to produce an elongated flame that will be incompletely burned by the time the gases pass above the tOp of the chimney 64. At that time the incompletely combusted rich gas will admix with a pair of substantially solely vertically directed air streams emanating from the openings of passages 66 and 67 at the top of the chimney 64 which streams have been furnished to the chimney from channels 78 and 82 connecting the chimney to regenerator sections 32B and 34B, respectively. The regenerator sections 32A and 32B are shown being supplied with combustion air from the same sole channel 92 through proportioned apertures 122 whereby to control the relative amounts. of combustion air flowing in through bottom opening or inlet 62 and chimney passage 66. Regenerator sections 34A and 34B are supplied from the same sole channel 94. The relative amounts of combustion air being introduced through the bottom inlet 63 and the chimney passage 67 is determined by a proportioning of the apertures 122 in the control plate 111 associated with the sole channel. The relative amounts of combustion air being supplied to the sole channels 92 and 94 are controlled exteriorly of the battery by operation of valves 106.

The burning of the rich gas continues to take place as the gas rises through the flue 26 by virtue of the gradual but slow admixture of the parallel stream of combustion air introduced by the chimney '64 until the rich gas is substantially completely combusted which completion should occur near the top of the flue. Thereafter the products of combustion pass down through the down flue 28 and partially out through the passages 72 and 73 in chimney 70 and partially out through the openings 68 and 69 in the bottom of the flues 28. The waste gas passing out through chimney passage 72 will pass into channel 86 and thence to regenerator section 36B. The waste gas passing through chimney passage 73 will flow into channel 88 and thence into regenerator section 38B. The waste gas passing out through opening 68 in the bottom of the flue 28 will flow into channel 84 and thence into regenerator section 36A and the gas passing out through opening 69 will flow into passage 86 and thence into regenerator section 38A. As the gases flow down through regenerator sections 36A, 36B, 38A and 38B to their respective sole channels 96 and 98, they will give up heat to the regenerator brickwork in said sections so that they are relatively cool when they pass into the sole channels and then out through the intakes 100, passages 102 and chimney flue 104.

The above described situation prevails for approximately half an hour whereupon the reversing valves controlling the flow of waste heat and combustion air to the sole channels are operated to cut oil? the flow of combustion air to the sole channels 92 and 94 and to open the supply of such combustion air to the sole channels 96 and '98. At the same time the sole channels 92 and 94 are connected to the passages .102 and the chimney flue 104. Substantially simultaneously rich gas is cut off from the distribution conduits 52 supplying the flues 26 by closing the valves 60 and rich gas is turned on to the distribution conduits 54 supplying the flues 28 by opening the valves 61. When this occurs the above described cycle is exactly reversed so that combustion air will flow up through the regenerator sections 36A, 36B, 38A and 38B and waste gases will flow out through regenerator sections 32A, 32B, 34A and 34B. The proportioning of the flow of combustion air into the regenerator sections 36A and 36B on the one hand and 38A and 38B on the other hand will be determined by a proportioning of the apertures 122 in the apertured plates 111 respectively associated with sole channels 96 and 98. The proportioning of the supply of combustion air to the sole channels 96 and 98 will in turn be controlled by the valves 106 associated with the sole channels 96 and 98. Thus, a close control of the supply and of the proportioning of combustion air to the up flues on either half of the total combustion cycle is readily achievable from outside the bat tery by operation of the valves 106 and by a selection of the appropriate plate sections for the apertured plate 111 which plate sections are readily interposed in the plate from outside the battery.

When the battery is operated as a lean gas battery, rich gas is completely turned off. Lean gas and air are both supplied to the inlets at the bottom of the up flues and to the inlets at the tops of the chimney passages of the up flues. Thus, for example, when heating flues 26 serve as up flues on lean gas operation, lean gas will be supplied from gas main 107 through valve i110 in riser pipe 108 to sole channel 92. The lean gas will flow up through the apertured plate 111 associated with sole channel 92 and into regenerator sections 32A and 32B. The lean gas flowing through the regenerator sections 32A will pass out through channel 76 and into the bottom of the flue 26 through inlet 62. The lean gas flowing through regenerator sections 32B will pass out from said regenerator sections through channel 78 and passage 66 to the top of chimney 64. The relative proportioning of the amount of lean gas introduced into the up flues 26 through inlets 62 and 66 is determined by a proportioning of the aperture area in the plate sections serving the regenerator sections 32A and 32B.

Similarly, combustion air will be supplied from sole channel 94 through the apertures 122 in the apertured plate 111 associated therewith to the regenerator sections 34A and 34B. Combustion air will pass out of the regenerator section 34A through the inclined channel 80 to the inlet 63 in the bottom of the heating flue 26. Combustion air will pass out through the regenerator section 34B through inclined channel 82 and thence through channel 67 to the top of chimney 64. The lean gas and combustion air respectively passing into the up flue 26 through the inlets 62 and 63 are both substantially solely vertically directed whereby to cause a slow admixture of these two parallel streams to retard the combustion thereof. This will hold the elongated flame that will result in an improved temperature distribution along the length of the heating flue. Likewise the parallel streams of lean gas and combustion air passing into the heating flue from the passages 66 and 67 respectively at the top of the chimney 64 will also admix and react slowly to thereby further elongate the flame and further improve the temperature uniformity in the flue. It will be obvious that the relative amounts of combustion air and lean gas introduced into the flues 26 are readily controllable from outside the battery by manipulation of the valves 106 and 110. The waste products will pass out through thedown flues 28 in precisely the same manner as they do on rich gas operation.

When the flow is reversed, the valves controlling the flow of lean gas from the main 107 to the sole channels 92 are closed and the valves 110 controlling the flow of lean gas from the main 107 to the sole channels 96 are open. At the same time the valves 106 associated with the sole channels 92 and 94 are reversed to connect said sole channels to the chimney flues 104 through the passages 102. Also the reversing valves 106 associated with the sole channels 98 are operated to cut oil? said sole channels from the chimney flue 104 and to connect said sole channels to the combustion air supply. This operation will cause lean gas to flow through the sole channels 96 and from said sole channels through the apertures 122 in the associated apertured plates 111 into the regenerator 36, both sections A and B thereof. The relative proportioning of the amount of lean gas furnished to the sections 36A and 36B is controlled by the relative proportioning of the total aperture areas of the plates 111 associated with the respective regenerator sections. The lean gas flowing through the regenerator sections 36A will pass out of said sections through inclined channels 84 and into the flue 28 through inlet 68 in the bottom thereof. The lean gas flowing through the regenerator sections 36B will pass out therefrom through inclined channels 86 and thence through the passage 72 in the chimney 70 to the top thereof. Likewise combustion air being supplied to the sole channel 98 will flow into the regenerator sections 38A and 38B through the associated apertured plates 111, the proportioning between sections A and B of regenerator 38 being determined by the relative aperture areas in plates 111 associated with the respective sections. The combustion air flowing through the regenerator sections 38A will pass therefrom through inclined channels 88 to the inlets 69 in the bottoms of the up flues 28. The combustion air flowing through the regenerator sections 38B will pass out of said regenerator sections through inclined channels 90 and thence through the passage 73 in the top of said chimney. The relative proportion of combustion air flowing through each of the regenerator sections 38A and 38B is determined by the relative aperture area serving said regenerator sections. As all combustion air and gas streams are substantially vertically directed, there will be very gradual admixture thereof to result in a very long flame and uniform heat. The waste gases pass out through the fines 26 as in rich gas operation.

While I have herein shown and described the preferred form of the present invention and have suggested modifications therein, other changes and modifications may be made therein within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention.

What I claim is:

1. A compound coke oven battery adapted to operate alternatively on rich gas and on lean gas, said coke oven battery comprising a plurality of spaced apart coke oven chambers and a plurality of heating walls therebetween at least one of said heating walls comprising a pair of spaced apart heating wall liners and a multiplicity of transversely extending spaced apart binders between said heating wall liners defining a plurality of vertically extending heating fines, each of said heating fines having means at the bottom thereof for introducing rich gas therein, a refractory deck underlying said coke oven chambers and said heating walls, a plurality of regenerators underlying said refractory deck, a multiplicity of transversely extending spaced apart partition walls disposed in one of said regenerators and defining a plurality of vertically extending end to end first and second regenerator sections therein, a multiplicity of transversely extending spaced apart partition walls disposed in another of said regenerators and defining a plurality of vertically extending end to end third and fourth regenerator sections therein, a first passage extending through said deck and communicating one of said first regenerator sections with the bottom of one of said heating fines, the upper end of said first passage terminating at the bottom of said heating flue at a point horizontally spaced from said rich gas introducing means, a second passage extending through said deck and terminating at a point substantially above the bottom of said flue, said second passage communicating one of said second regenerator sections with said heating flue, a third passage extending through said deck and communicating one of said third regenerator sections with the bottom of said heating flue, said third passage terminating at the bottom of said heating fiue at a point horizontally spaced from said rich gas introducing means and from said first passage, a fourth passage extending through said deck and terminating at a point substantially above the bottom of said flue, said fourth passage communicating one of said fourth regenerator sections with said heating flue, said first regenerator section being in non-communicating relation with each of said second, third and fourth passages, said second regenerator section being in non-communicating relation with each of said first, third and fourth passages, said third regenerator section being in non-communicating relation with each of said first, second and fourth passages, said fourth regenerator section being in non-communicating relation with each of said first, second and third passages, means for supplying air to said first and second regenerator sections during both rich gas and lean gas operation, means for alternatively supplying air to said third and fourth regenerator sections during rich gas operation and lean gas to said third and fourth regenerator sections during lean gas operation, means for regulating the air supply to said means for supplying air to said first and second regenerator sections, means for proportioning said air supply as between said first and second regenerator sections, means for regulating the supply of air and lean gas to said means for alternatively supplying air and lean gas to said third and fourth regenerator sections, and means for proportioning said air supply and said lean gas supply as between said third and fourth regenerator sections, whereby to regulate the total air supply to said flue and to proportion said air supply as between said first and third passages and said second and fourth passages during rich gas operation and to regulate the air supply and the lean gas supply to said fine and to proportion said air supply as between said first passage and said second passage and said lean gas supply as between said third passage and said fourth passage during lean gas operation.

2. A compound coke oven battery as defined in claim 1, wherein said means for regulating said supplies of air and lean gas are external to said battery.

3. A compound coke oven battery as defined in claim 1, wherein said heating Wall liners are of substantially uniform thickness.

4. A compound coke oven battery as defined in claim 1, wherein said means for supplying air to said first and second regenerator sections comprises a sole channel underlying said first and second regenerator sections and in communication therewith, said means for alternatively supplying air and lean gas to said third and fourth regenerator sections comprises another sole channel underlying said third and fourth regenerator sections and in communication therewith, the supply to each of said sole channels being regulated by separate supply regulating means external to said battery.

5. A compound coke oven battery as defined in claim 4, wherein said proportioning means are disposed between said sole channels and said regenerator sections.

6. A compound coke oven battery as defined in claim 5, wherein said proportioning means comprises a series of proportioned apertures disposed between said sole channels and said regenerator sections.

7. A compound coke oven battery as defined in claim 6, wherein said proportioning means comprises a plurality of plate sections detachably connected to each other in end to end relation, said plate sections being removably disposed between said sole channels and said regenerator sections and having a plurality of apertures therein in register with said generator sections.

8. A compound coke oven battery as defined in claim 7, further comprising means for providing access from outside said battery to said sole channels for removing said plate sections from and for disposing said plate sections in their defined position.

9. A compound coke oven battery as defined in claim 8, wherein the length of each of said plate sections is substantially equal to the length of a single regenerator section.

10. A compound coke oven battery as defined in claim 1, wherein the ends of said passages communicating with said heating fines are susbtantially solely vertically directed for introducing said air and said lean gas into said heating fines in substantially solely a vertical direction.

11. A compound coke oven battery as defined in claim 9, wherein the ends of said passages communicating with said heating fines are substantially solely vertically directed for introducing said air and said lean gas into said heating fiues in substantially solely a vertical direction.

12. A compound coke oven battery as defined in claim 11, wherein at least one of said heating flues further comprises a substantially solely vertically directed bifurcated chimney anchored to said deck and extending to a level substantially above the bottom of said fine, said bifurcated chimney defining the portions of said second and said fourth passages above said refractory deck.

13. A compound coke oven battery as defined in claim 112, wherein said chimney is spaced from said heating wall lners.

14. A compound coke oven battery as defined in claim 10, wherein said rich gas introducing means is substantially solely vertically directed for introducing rich gas into References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Mueller 202-142 Otto 202-135 Wethly 202-144 Wethly 202-142 Otto 202-135 Grumm 202-141 Van Ackeren 202-135 WILBUR L. BASCOMB, JR., Primal Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 

1. A COMPOUND COKE OVEN BATTERY ADAPTED TO OPERATE ALTERNATIVELY ON RICH GAS AND ON LEAN GAS, SAID COKE OVEN BATTERY COMPRISING A PLURALITY OF SPACE APART COKE OVEN CHAMBERS AND A PLURALITY OF HEATING WALLS THEREBETWEEN AT LEAST ONE OF SAID HEATING WALLS COMPRISING A PAIR OF SPACED APART HEATING WALL LINERS AND A MULTIPLICITY OF TRANSVERSSELY EXTENDING SPACED APART BINDERS BETWEEN SAID HEATING WALL LINERS DEFINING A PLURALITY OF VERTICALLY EXTENDING HEATING FLUES, EACH OF SAID HEATING FLUES HAVING MEANS AT THE BOTTOM THEREOF FOR INTRODUCING RICH GAS THEREIN, A REFRACTORY DECK UNDERLYING SAID COKE OVEN CHAMBERS AND SAID HEATING WALLS, A PLURALITY OF VERTICALLY EXTENDING END TO END THIRD AND FOURTH REGENERATORR SECTIONS THEREIN, A FIRST PASSAGE EXTENDING THROUGH SAID DECK AND COMMUNICATING ONE OF SAID FIRST REGENERATOR SECTIONS WITH THE BOTTOM OF ONE OF SAID HEATING FLUES, THE UPPER END OF SAID FIRST PASSAGE TERMINATING AT THE BOTTOM OF SAID HEATING FLUE AT A POINT HORIZONTALLY SPACED FROM SAID RICH GAS INTRODUCING MEANS, A SECOND PASSAGE EXTENDING THROUGH SAID DECK AND TERMINATING AT A POINT SUBSTANTIALLY ABOVE THE BOTTOM OF SAID FLUE, SAID SECOND PASSAGE COMMUNICATING ONE OF SAID SECOND REGENERATOR SECTIONS WITH SAID HEATING FLUE, A THIRD PASSAGE EXTENDING THROUGH SAID DECK AND COMMUNICATING ONE OF SAID THIRD REGENERATOR SECTIONS WITH THE BOTTOM OF SAID HEATING FLUE, SAID THRID PASSAGE TERMINATING AT THE BOTTOM OF SAID HEATING FLUE AT A POINT HORIZONTALLY SPACED FROM SAID RICH GAS INTRODUCING MEANS AND FROM SAID FIRST PASSAGE, A FOURTH PASSAGE EXTENDING THROUGH SAID DECK AND TERMINATING AT A POINT SUBSTANTIALLY ABOVE THE BOTTOM OF SAID FLUE, SAID FOURTH PASSAGE COMMUNICATING ONE OF SAID FOURTH REGENERATOR SECTIONS IN NON-COMMUNICATING REALTION WITH EACH OF SAID SECOND, THIRD AND FOURTH PASSAGES, SAID SECOND REGENERATOR SECTION BEING IN NON-COMMUNICATING RELATION WITH EACH OF SAID FIRST, THIRD AND FOURTH PASSAGES, SAID THIRD REGENERATOR SECTION BEING IN NON-COMMUNICATING RELATION WITH EACH OF SAID FIRST, SECOND AND FOURTH PASSAGES, SAID FOURT REGENERATOR SECTION BEING IN NON-COMMUNICATING RELATION WITH EACH OF SAID FIRST, SECOND AND THIRD PASSAGES, MEANS FOR SUPPLY AIR TO SAID FIRST AND SECOND REGENERATOR SECTIONS DURING BOTH RICH GAS AND LEAN GAS OPERATION, MEANS FOR ALTERNATIVELY SUPPLYING AIR TO SAID THRID AND FOURTH REGENERATOR SECTIONS DURING RICH GAS OPERATION AND LEAN 